Basic HTML Version
1
NOWTHEWEST
BRINGS
DRUGANDALCOHOL
-ABUSE TOASIA
by
John Halford with John Curry and Pedro Melendez Jr.
COHOL
has always been
a traditiona l part of
As ian society. Yet in
most Asian countries a lco–
holism has not reached the
epidemic proportions seen in
the West. Why?
Southeast Asians, a nd espe–
ciall y the Chinese, drink co–
piously, yet addiction to alcohol
seems to be uncommon . There
is a reason.
Mos t d rinking is done at meal–
times, and heavy drinking is asso–
ciated with banquets, weddings and
other celebrations. But alcohol does
not play a large part in
everyday
life. The concept of the Western
cocktail hour of háving sorne
friends over for a few drinks is not
traditional Asían hospi ta lity. So
Asian people did not , in general,
develop a dependence on alcohol , as
a cure-all for loneliness, depression,
stress and grief.
The Lesson of Japan
That is not to say that they can' t!
Post-war Japan has shown that. A
recent survey showed that three mil–
lion Japanese- 6 percent of the
adult population-can now be classi–
ficd as alcoholics and problem drink–
ers. That is a four-fold increase since
the end of World War TI . And tragi–
cally, one fifth of J apanese high
school students admit to needing a
drinkjust to keep going. Many Japa–
nese see this as further evidence of
the tragic results of abandoning tra–
ditional cul ture for the more liberal
Western way of life.
May 1982
There is significant truth in this.
lt can be clearly seen when we look
at the state of the drug problem
today in Asían countries. Drugs and
drug addiction are nothing new to
Southeast ·Asia. 1n the pas t govern–
ments remained tolerant and arnbiv–
alent. If the problem were consid–
ered at all , it was considered in rela–
tion to
use
rather than
abuse.
Opiates, usually in the unrefined
s tate, were used by the pean nt pop–
ulation as medicine, as an aid for
medication and- mixed with tobac–
co---=-for pleasure.
But look what has happened since
the hippie cultu re added Western
soph istication to the traditional
Asían pattern.
T ake, fo r example, Nepal. In
Nepal, until recently, no restriction
existed on buying, selling or con–
suming cannabis. It was simply one
of the facts of Nepalese life. Then
in the l960s carne an infJux of bip–
pie culture from Europe and North
America. Nonconformist Wes tern
youths made a pi lgrimage to this
mounta in kingdom, seeking a
Shangri-la to live out their befud–
dled fantasies.
Young Nepalese began to pat–
tern their lives after this degenerate
example-and suddenly Nepal had
a real drug problem! Today, the
buying and selling of cannabis is
legal ly restricted by the govern–
ment.
Other Asían governments take
even firme r act ion. Singapore's
leaders are determined that West–
ern counterculture does not infect
their you th. They go to great
lengths to keep it at bay. Long–
haired visitors have been surprised
to find that they have been asked to
get a haircut before being allowed
to enter the country.
Prime Minis ter Lee Kuan Yew
has made it quite clear that there
is no room in S ingapore society
for those who effect the clothes
a nd life-style of the drug culture.
The government has been known
to expel the e ntire families of for–
eign businessmen if their children
13